News Flash

City of Greenville Official News Releases

Posted on: June 21, 2018

Wells Fargo Red, White and Blue Festival Moving to Downtown Greenville’s West End

Wells Fargo Red, White and Blue presented by AT&T, the City of Greenville’s annual Independence Day celebration, is moving its event site to a new location in downtown Greenville’s West End. The free event will take place Wednesday, July 4 from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and offer a full evening of entertainment, including children’s rides, a variety of popular food and beverage vendors, live musical entertainment on two stages and one of the largest fireworks displays in the state.

“With new construction projects impacting the city’s skyline, fireworks visibility was becoming more and more problematic,” said Angie Prosser, Director of Public Information and Events. “Shifting the event site to the West End offers ample options for spectator viewing and provides a great opportunity to partner with the Greenville Drive.”

Attendees will once again be treated to a spectacular fireworks display synchronized to patriotic music and simulcast live from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on radio station 92.5 WESC. The fireworks show will begin at 9:45 p.m. and the best viewing will be on South Main Street from Augusta Street to Anderson Street and inside Fluor Field at the West End.

As part of this year’s festival, Wells Fargo will honor Specialist Robert Reveles, a local military veteran, with the Wells Fargo Military Hero Award. Specialist Reveles served in the U.S. Army, and over the course of his military career, was deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. During his service, Specialist Reveles was a part of significant combat missions and received the Combat Infantry Badge. Currently, Specialist Reveles is attending Greenville Technical College and is pursuing a degree in social work. Wells Fargo will honor Specialist Reveles with the Wells Fargo Military Hero Award on the Freedom Stage at Fluor Field at the West End at 6:15 p.m.

“We are pleased to continue our sponsorship of the Red, White and Blue festival as we celebrate the founding of our great nation,” said Wells Fargo Region Bank President Justin Hawkins. “It helps demonstrate our ongoing commitment to building strong, vibrant communities and making a positive difference for everyone. One of the many ways we do that is through our dedication to serving and honoring military members, veterans and their families. This year, we are proud to honor one of our local veterans from the Upstate, Specialist Robert Reveles, who served in Afghanistan and Iraq.”

The City has worked to maximize public safety and to minimize traffic delays, both coming into the city and leaving the downtown area. To assist them in those efforts, festival-goers are urged to plan their routes into and out of the city and to park in a garage or lot located in the section of downtown closest to where they are coming from. For example, recommended parking locations for motorists entering downtown from HWY 123 would include the Poinsett, River Street or RiverPlace garages; for motorists entering downtown from I-385, recommended parking locations would include the South Spring Street and Broad Street garages.

To aid residents and visitors who are planning to attend Wells Fargo Red, White and Blue, the Greenville Police Department encourages attendees to use the attached map, which outlines the festival site, downtown parking locations and planned traffic control patterns. A copy of the map can also be downloaded at http://events.greenvillesc.gov/RWB.

Festival-goers can also park at County Square (301 University Ridge) and ride Greenlink’s County Square Park & Ride trolley route to and from the festival site. In addition, Greenlink will operate a modified Heart of Main trolley route (detouring around festival road closures). Trolley service on both routes will be available from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. The Trolley Tracker app can be downloaded for free on Android and Apple devices to get real-time locations of the trolleys.

The festival is seeking volunteers to assist with a variety of positions and shifts. Volunteer positions include ticket and wristband sellers, finance helpers and beverage servers. All volunteers will receive a Wells Fargo Red, White and Blue t-shirt. To view volunteer opportunities and sign up, visit greenvillesc.gov/volunteer.

Additional event sponsors include Pepsi, iHeart Media and 92.5 WESC, WYFF 4, Budweiser of Greenville, The Greenville Journal, Greenville County Schools, Professional Party Rentals, Penske Truck Rental, Signatures Apparel and Patriot Hospice and Palliative Care. Lawn chairs and blankets are permitted on the event site outside Fluor Field at the West End. Pets and coolers are not allowed at Wells Fargo Red, White and Blue. Additionally, tailgating in City parking garages is not permitted. A full entertainment schedule is included below. For more information about the event, visit gvilleevents.com or follow the City on social media.

Event Schedule

5 p.m. – Festival begins6:15 p.m. – Presentation of Wells Fargo Military Hero Award on the Freedom Stage at Fluor Field at the West End8 p.m. – 10 p.m. - Live broadcast of the event on WESC 92.5 FM. A Salute To America will give event-goers the opportunity to listen to a simulcast of the soundtrack live on the radio.9:45 p.m. - Fireworks launch10 p.m. – Festival ends